Dear Reader:

Worldometer, Dec 7: Yesterday-  there were more than 175 thousand new cases and 1,087 new deaths in the U.S., over 32 thousand new cases and 374 new deaths in India; over 29 thousand new cases and 457 new deaths in Russia; over 26 thousand new cases and 321 new deaths in Brazil; close to 19 thousand new cases and 564 new deaths in Italy; close to 15 thousand new cases and 184 new deaths in Germany; over 17 thousand new cases and 231 new deaths in the UK; over 11.6 thousand new cases and 593 new deaths in Mexico;  over 11.5 thousand new cases and 294 new deaths in Iran; over 11 thousand new cases and 174 new deaths in France; over 9 thousand new cases and 228 new deaths in Poland; over 6 thousand new cases and 76 new deaths in Canada; over 2 thousand new cases and 32 new deaths in Japan; over 1.7 thousand new cases and 7 new deaths in Denmark; 631 new cases and 5 new deaths in South Korea; 272 new cases and 5 new deaths in Sudan; 9 new cases and zero new deaths in Australia; zero new cases and zero new deaths in China.

Reuters, Denmark tightens lockdown to curb Covid-19 spike, Dec 7: “Restaurants, museums, cinemas and other cultural institutions will have to close on Dec. 9 in 38 of 98 municipalities, including Copenhagen, and students in upper primary school, high schools and universities will be sent home… In the last 24 hours, 2,026 new infections have been registered out of more than 78,000 tests and 328 people have been hospitalized… The new restrictions will be in place until Jan 3. Countrywide restrictions already in place will be extended until March”.

Politico, Brix frustrated by ‘parroting back’ of virus misinformation, Dec 6: “White House coronavirus response coordinator Deborah Birx said Sunday she’s frustrated with the persistence of false claims about the spread of the virus… ‘When I go out, I just don’t meet with healthcare providers and governors and mayors, but I also meet with the community,’ Birx said. ‘And so I hear community members parroting back…  that masks don’t work, parroting back that we should work toward herd immunity, parroting back that gatherings don’t result in super-spreading events. And I think our job is to constantly say those are myths.’..

“Public health officials have stepped up their warnings as coronavirus cases hit record levels. A million new cases were diagnosed in the United States in the first five days of December… ‘I think it’s really important that every single person understands that the way this virus is spread is if you’re with anyone indoors without a mask, that’s a viral spreading opportunity,’ Birx said. ‘If you’re outdoors and hugging and kissing individuals, that is a viral spreading opportunity. We have to really understand how contagious, how infectious, this virus is…You cannot gather without masks in any indoor or close outdoor situation'”.

anita